Maybe Someday
by khughes830
Summary: Post-ep Gone Fishin'. Cassidy works in the DA's office, which means he's due for a run-in with Barba. Especially now. (Full disclosure: NOT a Cassidy fan. Hate this is how they are using him.) Total hints of Barson. Finished as of 10/11/17.
1. Chapter 1

I was so good. And then Brian flipping Cassidy knocked on her door. Ugh. So I fixed it.

Full disclosure: I worked in social services for 13 years. I spent lots of time working with investigators and school officials and saw my share of legit reports and complete BS reports. So part of this is me channeling my knowledge of social services and me being a mom of a strong willed 4 year old girl who doesn't realize the world doesn't revolve around her. This storyline is already under my skin and if they don't do it just right, I'm going to throw something.

* * *

He didn't even see his visitor as he walked toward his office, already reviewing messages on his phone.

"Barba."

He stopped, slowly looking over his shoulder at the offending speaker. The man himself – Brian Cassidy.

"You aren't on my calendar and I have no time for you."

"Better time to come back?"

"How about never?" Barba threw over his shoulder, walking into his office.

"I work here now."

"Yeah, I heard. Trust me. I voiced my strong opposition. I would love to know what you've got on the powers that be around here."

"I'm not like that Barba."

He dropped his briefcase on his desk, loudly. He placed his phone next to it and rested his hand flat on his desk, staring hard at the man in front of him.

"Sure. Whatever you say, Cassidy. Now get out."

"Can't. We need to talk about Liv." Barba laughed, shaking his head, unbuttoning his jacket and sitting down.

"Funny. Funny you want to talk about her now. NOW! Sorry. Your chance passed. Your chance was yesterday. Your chance was coming here the moment that bullshit report hit your desk. Now? You want to talk now? Now is no good for me. Yesterday was good for me. Not now."

"Barba, I've got to take what they hand me. You think I want to do this?"

Barba shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe you do. Maybe you want her groveling at your feet. What? She shot up the ranks while you got shown the door. Forced into retirement early. Boy, I imagine that pisses you right off."

"I always wanted the best for her" Cassidy shot back, going on the defensive.

"Did you? Really?"

"Yes."

"Then how can you do this? How? You know her!"

"This came from a school. You know how seriously the reports from schools get taken."

"Yeah, I know the stats. Do you? Do you need me to throw back at you the number of wasted hours social workers and police and lawyers waste on false claims? On people jumping the gun to cover their own asses? That if anyone had bothered questioning him just a little bit more, or even questioning him appropriate and by the law, he would have told them she did that to him pulling him back from getting mowed down by a taxi walking to school."

"She should have been watching him better." Barba wanted to throw something at Cassidy. Maybe his fist.

"And you obviously have no concept of a strong-willed toddler who just wants to see the world. Noah is curious and he was following the rules. The signal told him to walk. He's smart and he listens to his mother and that taxi was at fault. Olivia is a good mom. No. Olivia is a great mom. That boy is her number one priority each and every day and if you claim to know her as much as you probably have to others, then you would be fighting this bullshit tooth and nail. But, hey, maybe for you, talking down Liv is a win win. You get a big bag and you get to put her in her place."

"Look, Barba. I know you two are close. Sounds like you've spent some time with Liv and Noah." Barba's eyes flared wide and he clenched his jaw. Something about the way this man was so casually talking about Liv and her son made him want to put Cassidy in the ground.

"You don't know shit, Cassidy. You have proven it time and time again and this latest move of yours just proves that."

Cassidy pushed himself off the wall he had been leaning against, heading toward the door. "This investigation is happening, Barba. I'm here now. Eventually you will need to talk to me. We are talking to everyone. Don't make me force the issue."

"Don't threaten me, Cassidy. Ever. You have no idea how far I will go to…" he trailed off. Cassidy smiled. "To protect her? Would you lie for her, Barba? Cover for her? If the taxi thing is true, then so be it. But if she's in over her head, she needs help. If you care about her, you will recognize that."

"Go to hell, Cassidy."

Cassidy just shook his head, turning on his heel and heading out the door, almost running right into Fin as he left. Fin glared at the man as Cassidy pushed past him, moving as quickly as he could down the hall.

"I don't know how you all ever managed to work with him on a daily basis" Barba said, collapsing into his seat, looking up at the sergeant.

"He's not the same guy he was back then. It's a shame" Fin replied, dropping into his seat.

Barba nodded, rubbing his hand on his face. "I thought Liv was coming over to talk about the case you all caught last night."

"She had to meet with Langan this morning. I told her to take the day. What good is this title if I can't use it every once in a while, you know?" Barba nodded. "How is she?" he asked. "I tried calling her last night but she didn't answer."

"Honestly, I haven't seen her this shaken up in a long time. It's getting to her." Barba shook his head, letting out the breath he had been holding.

"You know, Counselor, one of these days you may try telling her all those things you just said to Cassidy. I think she might like to hear that coming from you." Barba looked down at the file on his desk, opening it up, shrugging slightly.

"So, you heard all that, I guess."

"Sure did."

"Well, it's all true. All of it. He is right about one thing, though." Barba looked at Fin. "I will go to the ends of the earth to protect her and that boy. Have since the beginning. Don't plan to stop now. Whatever it takes. This is a witch hunt and I will help her prove it."

"We all will, Counselor. But again, maybe tell her all of that sometime? Just like that. You never know."

"Maybe someday, Fin. Maybe someday."


	2. Chapter 2

This really was supposed to be a one shot. But I woke up this morning with a follow up chapter in my head. This is me, trying to fix it more. Unsure if I will continue or just leave it here. Plus, I know Langan is back in Ep 3 and the idea of Langan and Barba crossing paths makes me happy in a very special way.

* * *

The day had dragged. Long and torturous. He had heard Carmen dismiss Cassidy again later in the afternoon after he showed up again uninvited. Barba had tried his best to get through his work, dive into briefs and motions but all he could think about was this thing Olivia was dealing with. An ignored call and three texts that just sat on delivered. It was a little after 5 when Carmen stuck her head in the door.

"Mr. Barba, I'm leaving. And if you were looking to make an escape, Cassidy just went into a last-minute meeting. He's got at least 30 minutes." Barba resolved to give Carmen a raise on her next annual review. She was his life saver. "Thank you, Carmen. Go home. I'll see you tomorrow. She nodded and closed his door. He sat for another minute, staring at his hands, knowing he needed to get out of there before Cassidy had a chance to corner him again. If it happened now, Barba knew he would throw punches.

* * *

His hand was raised, ready to knock on her door when it was opened by a man he immediately tagged as another lawyer, based on the suit and the briefcase. He took a step back. Both of them froze for a second, looking at each other.

The other man looked over his shoulder. "Olivia needed a minute. She… well, it's been a rough day. I'm not sure she's up for a visitor right now."

"Yeah, I tried calling but… sorry" he said, clearing his throat, extending his hand. "Rafael Barba."

The other man smiled slightly, meeting Barba's extended hand. "Trever Langan. Nice to finally put a name with the face." They quickly shook hands and Trevor stepped out into the hall, keeping the door from shutting all the way.

"I hear you fought her on putting Johnny D's name on Noah's birth certificate." Barba just nodded. "Me too. Did I everything I could to talk her out of it. Maybe we should have joined forces back then. Think it would have made a difference?"

"Not at all. It's Olivia. Once her mind is made up…" Barba trailed off as both men nodded. Trevor cleared his throat, checking his watch. "Well, I've got a social services worker waiting on me. I've got to go." Barba nodded. "We can share the elevator."

Trevor stopped him, grabbing his shoulder. "No. You should go in. I didn't know who you were when I said that a minute ago. She… I think she needs someone right now. Lucy took Noah out for dinner and a movie and she may even keep him with her tonight. Olivia needs a minute to get her head right but… I don't think she needs to be alone. I begged her to call someone but she said no. But yet, here you are." Trevor smiled. "Like fate or something. Go in. Tell her I'll call her tomorrow."

Barba watched the other man go, taking in his words. He slowly pushed open the door, taking off his jacket and hanging it up. He heard the click and just looked around, taking in her place. It felt like home. It was warm and lived in. Full of life and love. Every spot in this place was Olivia and Noah. How anyone could ever think that Olivia would do anything but protect that boy made his blood boil.

He walked into her small kitchen, not really knowing what to do. So, he did what he used to do when his mother was having a bad day. He rolled up his sleeves and started to do the dishes. The running water drowned out her quiet footsteps coming down the hall, but he heard her gasp when she rounded the corner, finding him there, doing a task she hadn't been able to bring herself to do in over a day.

He glanced over and shut off the water, grabbing a towel to dry his hand, just staring at her.

"Langan was leaving as I was about to knock and he told me to… he thought that..." he wasn't sure how to finish his thoughts, looking at her, a little broken and very sad. It made him angry and protective of her. "Liv."

Her name off his lips propelled her forward. He dropped the towel on the floor a moment before she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, dropping her head down and letting loose the tears and emotion that had been building up since Cassidy had knocked on her door.

He just held her, letting her cry on his shoulder. He could feel the tears soaking through his dress shirt and all he cared about was taking away her pain and burying Cassidy. So, they stood there, her holding onto him like he was anchoring her to the ground, him slowly rubbing her back, trying to take this weight off her shoulders. He finally felt her tears start to slow and her breathing come back down.

"We're going to fix this, Liv. I will fix this. I promise."

She pulled back, focusing on the wet spot she had left on his shoulder. She traced her finger around his, feeling him tighten his arms around her waist.

"I'll pay to get this cleaned" she said, being unsure how else to respond. He laughed. "Will you please stop trying to take care of everyone else right now? Forget about my shirt. It's just a shirt." She finally met his eyes. Those soulful, caring, beautiful green eyes that could always pull her back from the brink. Always. She had no more fight left in her. After this… the rest of her fight had to be over. She continued to draw light circles on his shoulder, stepping closer to him.

"What are you doing here?"

"Dishes". He smiled when she smiled.

"No, I mean…"

He cleared his throat. "I spent all day worried. Cassidy got the jump on me this morning…" he felt her tense up just at the mention of his name. "Don't worry. I told him to go to hell and that he's an idiot."

"How did that feel?" she asked, a slight grin on her face.

"Not as good as I think punching him would have felt, but it was alright." The smile grew a bit. "Anyway, I was worried and Carmen waved the flag so I could get out of the building without running into him again and I… I just had to come here. I was worried."

She ran her eyes over his face. There she saw concern and worry and caring. She saw someone who wanted to protect her, for a change. She knew it was there and she knew what she thought about it, but there was always a reason to just not. And there was a huge reason now, but she found she didn't care. Not anymore. Trevor had suggested surrounding herself with people who could support her and Noah. Give her help and be a shoulder to lean on. As he said that, Barba was immediately who she knew she needed. And then, she came out to find him standing there, doing the one chore she loathed more than any other. No begging. No questions asked.

She stepped a fraction closer to him, wrapping both arms lightly around his neck. His eyes widened and she could feel his breathing stop for a moment.

"Liv…" he whispered, running his eyes all over her face.

"Rafael… please… I have felt like shit for almost 36 hours now. I want to hide in this apartment and never leave again. Noah and I both know the truth, but it is starting to feel like none of that matters. I need to feel like something matters. I need to feel like I matter to someone."

"Liv… you know you do. You matter to Noah. And the squad." He watched her face, her eyes. Her walls were crumbling. It felt all wrong and so right all at the same time. "And me. You matter to me, Liv. Always have." He barely got the last word out before her lips were on his. She gave in to him, completely. He tightened his hold on her waist, turning them and walking her backwards till her back hit the wall. The impact with the wall broke something loose in her. Suddenly, their tongues were dueling and she ran her hands down his torso as he cradled her face, yanking his dress shirt out of his pants, resting her hands on his back. She felt him growl against her mouth and she was lost.

He felt is control crumbling. He wanted her. For so long. He couldn't remember a time he didn't want her. But now was not the time. She was vulnerable and hurt and sad. The last thing she needed was one more man taking advantage. So, he used what was left of his self-control and pulled back. He smiled as she huffed, finally opening her eyes.

He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, resting his hand against her cheek.

"Liv." He felt her tense up. "Relax. Just listen." He felt her let go a little bit. "Good. Look. The very male part of me wants nothing more than to take you right up against this wall and then after that, spend lots of naked hours with you in your bed. Trust me. But, that's not happening right now. You don't need that right now." She started to shake her head, but he stopped her, placing his other hand against her other cheek.

"Yes, Olivia. I promise. I'm not going anywhere. You are going to beat this stupid investigation and I'm going to get the pleasure of burying Cassidy so deep everyone will forget he existed. Then after that… after all that… I'll have my mother, who is getting roped in to your inner circle in just a few minutes… take Noah for a fun night while you and I hole up here for our own fun night. Deal?" He almost said screw it when she bit her lip, but he was able to beat back that idea.

She slowly dropped her hands off his back and nodded. "I'm going to hold you to that, Counselor." He smiled. "I wouldn't expect anything less." He took a step back, lightly grabbing her hands, walking her over to the couch. He got out his legal pad and pen, joining her, getting to sit as close to her as he wanted.

"Tell me everything you and Langan talked about. We're going to beat Cassidy and anyone else who tries to cause you any more trouble. That's a promise." Olivia nodded and started to talk.


	3. Chapter 3

Cause we all deserve something nice and smile inducing after last week's BS and now what we all know is coming this week - whatever hell Brooke Shields is about to unleash on the SVU-verse.

* * *

She hadn't moved from the window in at least 20 minutes. She was afraid she would wear a hole in his carpet. They both had told her to wait here. It would be better if she wasn't there to hear the final ruling. They were both trying to be positive. But the fear had been lingering there for weeks. Since the investigation and this woman just suddenly appearing out of nowhere, making claims about Noah… she had barely slept, forced herself to eat and tried to maintain a positive outlook for Noah's sake. But she was exhausted and the fear had been eating at her since the sun had come up this morning. Today was it. The end. Or the beginning of hell. She glanced over at Fin, who had insisted on waiting with her. Pretty sure because Barba had strongly urged him to not leave her alone.

She was only two floors away from the proceedings, but it felt like a whole world. She leaned her head against the window frame and closed her eyes.

She whipped around when she heard the office door open. In walked Trevor Langan – the man she had trusted with her son. With their lives. He smiled at her and felt the relief to wash over her.

"It's over, Liv. All of it. That woman… she's gone." She collapsed into Barba's desk chair, looking at Trevor.

"Really?"

Langan nodded. "Yeah. The judge… well, when he started questioning her, she started getting angry and belligerent. Then I was able to catch her in a lie, thanks to Barba. His memory is no joke. When she started screaming about how the state stole Noah from his family, it just kind of all fell apart from there. The adoption is still good. It's rock solid, like I knew it was from the beginning. We were kind of wondering if maybe she wasn't just looking for a pay day or something. Anyway, the judge threw out her petition, the state filed an injunction on Noah's behalf to keep her away from him till he turns 18 and she stormed out." Olivia, for the first time in weeks, felt like she could breathe again. "Where's Barba?"

"I had to physically verify something, Liv. Sorry." He said, strutting into his office in a way she had only seen him do after a big win in pre-trial motions. "I also just got another tidbit of good news while we were in there and I wanted to see it with my own eyes" Barba said, rounding his desk and leaning against the corner. "Turns out the Rochester DA's office needed a new lead investigator pretty quick. I'm friendly with the executive ADA up there and couldn't recommend Brian Cassidy more highly enough. Turns out the DA up there called in a favor with McCoy and… well, a substantial raise and basically being told he was no longer trusted here and Cassidy cleaned out his office and took off. He may have also been told to not come back. Ever. He's gone too." Olivia wasn't sure Barba was ever going to be able to top the gift he had just given her – Cassidy gone for good. "For real?"

Barba smiled as he pulled out his phone, holding it up for her to see a picture of Cassidy walking out of the building, holding a box. "Told you I went to get proof. I knew you would ask." She was very close to kissing him when Langan cleared his throat.

"Well, Olivia. Not that it wasn't great seeing you and Noah again, but how about next time we just run into each other on the street, ok?" Olivia just nodded.

"Thank you, Trevor."

"Any time Olivia." He gave her a smile and turned to leave. "I'll walk out with you, Langan" Fin said, pushing himself out of the chair. She could only watch them leave, not having any words in the moment.

"Liv" he said very quietly, looking down at her, smiling. She leaned back, taking him in. Since that night in her apartment all those weeks ago, they had maintained the line. They had to. Even without saying it, they both knew it wasn't the time. They had a job to do. No distractions and certainly no ammunition for Cassidy or anyone else to use. But the case was over. Cassidy was gone. She silently prayed to never lay eyes on him again.

"Counselor, I'm trying to figure out the best way to say thank you" she said, enjoying the look on his face. He cleared his throat, pushing himself off the desk, extending his hand to her. She took it and smiled when he squeezed her hand.

"I think you should go pick Noah up from school and have a mommy/son night." She paused, looking at him. There were nights, when she felt alone and beaten that the memory of him, and them, in her apartment with a promise of more when this was over… it kept her going.

She was about to open her mouth to complain when he grabbed her other hand. "Liv, listen. We… we have time. But you have been on edge for weeks. You need a night with your son. Because he's your son. I made sure of that back then, I made sure of it now and I will always make sure of that. Always. But you need to go home, have a relaxing, silly night with Noah. We… we will get there. I promise."

"I'm thinking about kissing you, Rafael."

"You better not or not only won't you get out of this office, but Carmen will wonder why my entire desk is on the floor." The thought of that made her shudder a bit and he smiled, giving her a quick wink.

"You go, Olivia. Go get Noah. We can talk later."

* * *

She was beginning to wonder about later when there was a knock on her door in the late morning. He had been right. The night just her and Noah was exactly what both of them had needed. No interruptions – Fin had made sure of that – and silly movies and cheeseburgers for dinner had given them both a reset they had needed.

She opened it to see the smiling faces of Rafael and Lucia Barba standing in her doorway. She returned the smile.

"Olivia, darling, I'm so happy for you and Noah" Lucia said, pulling in for a hug. When Barba has promised his mother, he had more than delivered. There were days Lucia helped keep her sane. For a terrible 10 days, she has to be supervised at all times with Noah. Between Lucy and Rafael and Lucia (and some fancy footwork by Trevor), they had been able to make that happen without Noah really knowing what was going on. But Lucia had become someone that Noah just leaned in to. They had bonded and she was everything she ever wanted for her son. So, it was no surprise that he immediately started screaming for her when she entered the apartment.

"Still in Pj's, Noah? That just won't do. No sir. Go get dressed. You and I have plans today." He didn't even look back at his mother as he ran to his room, getting dressed faster than Liv thought was possible. Maybe she needed to record Lucia asking her son to get dressed to use on school mornings when he didn't want to get out of bed. He was back, jacket and shoes on, before Olivia had registered what was going on.

"Where we going, Lucia?"

"Well, I thought lunch and a movie and maybe a snack and church is having a fall festival today I need to swing by. Want to do all that with me?" He nodded so hard Olivia thought his head might fall off.

"Perfect" she said, grasping his hand. She looked back and forth between Olivia and her son. "I figure we could be back in time for dinner if that works for you two." She watched Barba press his lips together as he nodded at his mother and held the door open for the two of them.

Noah was halfway down the hall before he yelled a goodbye back to the two of them.

She watched Barba shut the door and turn slowly toward her. The smile did her in. She crossed the room, throwing herself on to him, pressing him up against her door. By the time they broke to breath, her shirt was gone, his was unbuttoned and her right leg was wrapped around him. He dragged her other leg up and around his waist. "This isn't happening for the first time against your front door" he growled out, carrying her back toward her bedroom.

* * *

She collapsed on top of him, a sweaty, exhausted, sated mess and she had never felt better about life in general. She rolled her head up to look at him, arm thrown over his eyes, breathing just as heavy as she was.

"I saw we let my mother keep Noah, quit our jobs and never leave this bed" he said, pulling his arm off his face and wrapping his around her shoulders. She laughed as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"I'm not sure that's a feasible idea" she replied.

"But you have to admit that it sounds like a good idea."

"A great idea."

"Maybe one of my best."

"I would agree" she said, pressing a light kiss to his chest. That well-defined chest that he hides in those suits. Knowing that now, she could kick herself for not doing this with him much, much earlier.

He rolled his head over and looked at the clock. "We should consider making ourselves presentable, Liv. Mom said dinner and to her that's 6:30 on the dot." Liv looked at the clock. 5:15. She threw the covers off, rolling out of bed, dragging him behind her.

"Perfect. That's plenty of time for us to use up all the hot water in the shower."

"We are chock full of good idea this afternoon, Lieutenant" he said as she shut the bathroom door behind them.

* * *

Olivia stopped for a moment, taking in the scene in front of her. Rafael had been right. At 6:30 on the nose, Lucia was at the door with Noah, bags in hand to make dinner for the four of them. It was past Noah's bed time, but she didn't care and neither did he. After they ate, he pulled all the games out that he loved to play. They were in the middle of a very intense game of Candy Land and Olivia watched at Rafael and Noah argued about a move he made on the board. She had thought for the longest time that her family would be just her and Noah. She never admitted that she always wanted more for him and for her. Others to spend their days and nights with. Others to celebrate with and to just be with. She had always thought 'maybe, someday' it would happen for them. But after Tucker, she had given up hope and had resigned herself to the fate of just the two of them.

Till now. Till she saw how Noah took to Lucia. Till she saw how he looked up to the ADA currently being dominated at Candy Land. Till she walked out of her son's bedroom, broken and hurt to find this man doing her dishes, wanting to make her life easier in any way possible. And she realized that maybe that someday had finally arrived.

He looked over at her and winked. "Get over here, Liv. Help me figure out how I'm getting destroyed at this game, please!" She laughed and joined the rest of them around the table.


End file.
